Electronic Journal of Human Sexuality,
Vol. I, Oct. 19, 1998

www.ejhs.org

Sexuality and Senior Olympians

Peter B. Anderson, PhD, Keri Diez, MEd, Susan F. Tynes, PhD

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine and describe the self-reported
sexual frequency and sexual self-image of senior Olympic athletes. The
questionnaire contained items related to demographics, physical activity,
attitudes and beliefs toward sports participation, general life satisfaction,
general life activity, and sexual behavior and self-image. Respondents
were 19 male and 16 female Caucasian heterosexual senior athletes (age
range 54-78, M=64.5) who reported expressing themselves sexually,
alone or with a partner, on average 6 times monthly (range 0-20). They
desired to increase their sexual expression to 7.8 times monthly (range
0-20). Despite an overall drop in reported frequency in sexual expression
related to the increasing age of the participants (M= 9.2 for 50
year old's; M= 4.6 for 70 year old's), there was no statistical
difference in the average rate of sexual expression between the groups.
Overall the respondents described themselves as being always or almost
always affectionate (69%), confident (64.3%), contented (63%), enthusiastic
(69.2%), faithful (81.5%), gentle (81.5%), loving (75%), and romantic (70.4%)
in depicting themselves as sexual persons.

Key Words: aging, sexuality, athletes, physical activity

This article was presented as a poster at the annual Southern District
AAHPERD Convention, Biloxi, MS., February 7, 1998. It is a primarily descriptive
work that will hopefully lead to more sophisticated explorations of sexuality
and physical activity among older adults.